Between Shadows
by brandonlov
Summary: They came in strange boats, with even stranger clothing. In the light of the moon, they glimmered and sparkled, taking the first steps onto the shallow water, splashing until they reached the sandy shore.


**I do not own Harry Potter (even though it is extremely AU), nor claim to truly know the culture of the Nahua.**

This new fic is dedicated my beta Hilary, otherwise known as _blueskyshymoon-olgameisterfunk_. Thanks for catching my endless typos.

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(**Hermione's POV**)

The stench of war made my mind swirl with repulsion. The sea of corpses never failed to make my stomach tighten to the point of where emptying the contents of my breakfast was the only option.

There was no way to make this end, or so it seemed. My people had tried to make peace, to end this hellish period, but _they_ wouldn't listen to reason. No, the white man only looked at us as if we were nothing more than lowly animals, sent to ruin their plans to take over our home.

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They came in strange boats, with even stranger clothing. In the light of the moon, they glimmered and sparkled, taking the first steps onto the shallow water, splashing until they reached the sandy shore.

They looked around, taking in their surroundings, before producing a stick with a cloth attached to it. They spoke, a language that was enchanting and appalling all at once, and stuck the stick on the ground. The strange men cheered, their rejoicing sort of battle cry that had me backing deeper into the haven of trees and vines.

I inhaled a deep breath before motioning to Yaocihuatl and Chimalli to retreat, trying to hide the panic that I felt. The dirt under my feet seemed to thunder as I ran, the rustling of leaves resounding in my ears as we made our way back to the village. Cold rain drops hit my back painfully, the wind whistled angrily in my ears, and I sped my pace.

Who were they? Where did they come from? Did the Gods send them? Father had not asked the Gods to send a sign while praying, nothing to cause the pale men to come.

With the amount of rain that we were receiving, father had only wanted a reassurance that our crops would live and not perish under the weather. He didn't ask for anything out of the ordinary… nothing at all.

I slowed my pace upon seeing the familiar face of my father. His brow was already furrowed, and I was sure he could sense that something large was going to happen, something that was going to be destructive to our people. My heart beat a dark rhythm and all I could do was bow to show my respect as I reached the tall frame of my father.

"Painalli, my daughter, what has happened? The earth shakes, the wind is howling, and the clouds are in turmoil."

I looked deep into his dark eyes before bowing my head.

"Strange men have come in peculiar boats, father. They are located in the south shore."

I felt hands raise my head, the roughness of dealing with the agriculture of our land present in them.

"My daughter, do not be afraid. There is always an explanation for every ripple in the river, every wind that blows through our hair, and every frost that that the Gods send. There will be an explanation for the men that are in our lands. Do not fret; what the Gods have sent will soon be in place to what they have planned."

By the end of his speech, I could feel the hair in the nape of my neck stand on end, but the wind that had been rippling by had died down. _They_ were close. I could feel it.

Father inhaled deeply, closing his eyes in the process. We all stood still, waiting for instructions.

"They are not any of the tribes that we have traded with, are they?"

No one answered, for we knew that he wasn't really looking for an answer. I felt as Yaocihuatl stepped next to me, her hand offering support as we waited.

"Painalli, my daughter, you will come with me. You were the one who sighted them, and will be in charge of telling our people."

I straightened my back when father opened his eyes, seeing the warmth and love that reflected in his eyes. It never failed to remind me of when mother was alive; there never was a day where she didn't look at me in that manner. But those days were over, and she had succumbed to death, joining the wind, the earth, and the rain that looked over our village. Her presence was still hovering over us, protecting the daily lives of our people with her spiritual guidance.

"Yes, father. As you wish."

Yaocihuatl and Chimalli walked on each of my sides as father led the way to the temple. The light of the moon was slowly leaving, the rays of the sun penetrating the land. We climbed the steps of the temple, our pace slow, as if our hearts were dictating just how fast our feet were to move. But we reached the top, and a collective breath was inhaled from the four of us as we took in the sight before us.

As the red and orange of the sun fully set, it made a twinkling sight of the strange men that were walking in the direction of the village. From the top of the temple one could see their steady pace as they willed large knifes and cut down the green of the forest, leaving in their wake bare plants and destroyed flowers. The wind blew their words up into the air, their strange language reaching each of our ears, and I was once again intrigued by the eccentric lilt of it.

I watched as they finally set foot into our village, a heavy weight settling in my heart. Their pale faces showed curiosity and a strange emotion that I could not interpret lodged deep in their fierce eyes.

When they spotted us, they took off their peculiar silver hats, as if to salute us. All had dark hair, except one. His hair shone in with the rays of the sun, a silvery white that had my eyes glued to it. It was the most peculiar thing, for he looked relatively young, and appeared to be in great health. So why did he have the hair the color of those with great age?

As I assessed the rest of the strange men, the dark feeling in the pit of my stomach increased. Was Nantlil, mother, trying to warn me of them?

Just by looking in their fierce eyes, I knew that they did not come in peace. No, I could see by their proud posture, by their arrogant stance, that they came here looking for something, something that would ultimately destroy the way of our people.

My eyes perused the men once again, taking in as they walked, their feet aligned perfectly with each other, before they stopped at the bottom of the temple.

The silvery white of his hair caught my attention again and I was met with eyes the color of the ocean, a raging storm of blue and silver that caused me to stand perfectly still. I couldn't help but notice, that he seemed to be out of place between the throng of men that surrounded him. His features were slightly different than those of his neighbor; finer, thinner features that had my eyes glued to him.

Father spoke then, and I paid attention to the rumbling words that resonated around the village.

"Hello, welcome to our village!"

None of the men seemed to understand though, if their confused faces were anything to go by. However, father was nothing if not cordial.

"Hello, welcome to our village!"

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(**Draco's POV**)

"Niltze lapaloa altepetl!"

The strange language intrigued me even more than the foreign land that surrounded me. The four individuals on top of some sort of building were even more interesting, their tanned skin radiating with the rays of the sun.

I looked around myself to notice the disgruntled the faces of my company and hastily took my wand out to cast a translating spell to my ears. The spell took place just as the tall man spoke again, his voice filling the space around us.

"Hello, welcome to our village!"

The men around me gave me expectant looks, and I had no choice but to make my way towards the front as the men parted to let me through.

I looked up, finally able to take in the four individuals before me. There was a pair that dressed in similar fashion of beige color, but the woman had an added amount of blue on her top, while the man only had a darker brown pattern. The man who spoke was clearly a noble, if the colorful outfit was to be taken in consideration, his stance proud.

However, the woman next to the noble was dressed only in white, the color of her skin contrasting skillfully with her clothing. She appeared to be related to the noble, for they shared dark eyes and full lip, and her stance mirrored his proud one, if only a bit more delicate.

I found my voice after a few seconds though, and broke the silence that had overtaken the space around us.

"We come in peace!" The sentence didn't truly sound convincing, even to my own ears.

"_Titlatoa Nahuatl?"_

"Do you speak Nahuatl?"

I sent a translating spell in the way of the noble and the woman dressed in white, ensuring that my wand remained well hidden behind my back.

"No, but I do understand you, as should you."

The natives' faces were of awe and horror, their hands reaching for their ears.

"What kind of witchcraft is this?" cried the noble.

I chose to ignore the question, focusing on the women next to him. She appeared to have gotten over the shock of understanding me and was now peering at me, her eyes burning straight through me.

"We come in peace," I tried again.

The noble grunted, his brow furrowed in a troubled expression.

"If you come in peace, then why are you wielding weapons?" The voice of the noble caused several natives to emerge from their homes; if they were surprised at seeing us, they didn't show it.

"They are only for protection," I answered.

"Very well. Then I and my village welcome you, so long as you mean no harm."

I nodded my head, bowing my head slightly. "I assure you; I do not come with ill means."

I could not talk for the rest of the men, but I could certainly speak for myself when it came to ill intentions. This place was too intriguing to destroy, and obliterating this village would certainly be a waste. The Spanish were looking for gold and glory, but I was only looking to explore a new culture, to expand my knowledge of the world.

It was my father's prejudiced ways that caused me to leave his household, but had it not been for him, then I would have never learned of the world outside of England. I would have never traveled the world and landed upon Spain, where the opportunity to see a new world was suddenly a possibility. I was recruited as a translator, for they believed I was a master at languages. Little did they know that magic was the answer behind understanding and speaking Spanish.

"We are explorers," I said. "We came to explore these and surrounding lands. We came to introduce ourselves."

The woman dressed in white shifted to the left, her footsteps light as she descended the strange building. She kept her head high, her wild mane of curly hair seeming to bounce behind her as she made her way down. The pair in beige followed behind her, acting like the bodyguards that I'm sure they were.

She stopped in front of me, a mere five feet separating our bodies. The air around me suddenly smelled of flowers, the aroma reaching my nose in a most enjoyable way.

"I am Painalli," said the woman.

"I am Draco." Her brow furrowed, her lips sounding my name.

"Draco, what a strange name… What does it mean?"

Her eyes showed genuine curiosity, and she didn't seem to be repulsed by standing close to me; unlike the pair next to her, whose mouths were pulled into frowns.

"It is a star, which means 'dragon'."

Her face showed mirth and confusion, a slight smile gracing her lips. Her eyes perused my face, their dark color looking almost black against her tan skin.

"I can see you don't mean harm to my people. Although, I cannot say the same thing for the men behind you." Her eyes left my face, channeling her burning gaze to the Spanish armada behind me.

"It would mean a great deal if you let us explore your lands. Would that be possible?" I asked, wary that the men behind were getting restless from standing in one position for long.

Painalli's gaze returned to my face, a guarded expression on her face. She raised her hand, the limb resting in midair.

"Welcome to Colhuacan- Draco the dragon."

I understood and shook her hand, the warmth of her fingers spreading through my own cold limb. She let go first, a smile gracing her lips as she turned to leave.

"My name means messenger. In case you wanted to know Draco the dragon," she said without turning around, taking the scent of flowers with her.

Messenger…_Hermione_ meant messenger.

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**N/A:** Thank you for reading. Please tell me what you thought- your comments will help for the next chapter. However, this story will not be long; I'm expecting between seven and ten chapters.

Thanks!


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